Paying for Representation
December 10, 2009
Some one recently came to Croydon Music for support and asked advice on the following subject. This young lady had recently met with a management company who said they were very interested in working with her. Obviously the individual concerned was very happy, but the conversation that followed left her more concerned then optimistic.
After stating their interest the company in question went on to establish their credentials by saying they had worked with a number of successful acts currently in the industry and that they had an extensive network that she would be exposed to. Now here was the catch, to access this network and start the management process she had to pay a certain substantial figure in studio costs to record tracks in their studio.
Now I realise that there are many changes happening in the music industry, every day there is something new to research or consider, but this scenario didn’t ring true to the artist or myself. In any business relation ship there needs to be balance, both sides need to have invested something in the equation.
Management traditionally involves an act being discovered or finding a representative that totally believes in what they are doing and continues to develop and find opportunities for said artist to exploit their talent for financial gain. A manager in my experience and many others never charges an artist up front for his services, if this was the case when an artist was on a lean period and had no money their representation would be no where to be seen. This scenario seemed very similar to the certain model agencies who charged hopefuls a significant amount of money to take photos and put together a portfolio to obtain work from.
I would encourage artists to educate themselves in the ways of the music industry and stop buying into the great almighty savior who will get themselves through the pearly gates of a major company and work on developing themselves as an act and performer, I guarantee if an act has developed their skills and product to a professional level and built a strong following, you will not have to search for people to represent you they will find you.
